Playwriting Studies at the University of Birmingham is Britain’s leading programme dedicated to the craft of the dramatist. Founded by internationally-renowned playwright David Edgar, this flagship degree was the country’s first postgraduate course in playwriting. The programme offers students a unique opportunity to explore the building blocks of the dramatist’s craft, both practically and theoretically.
In 2009/2010 the MPhil(B) in Playwriting is celebrating its 20th anniversary. In March 2010 we will hold a conference on teaching playwriting that will see the performance of 20 brand new short plays by our graduates and a weekend of discussion and reflection on the teaching of playwriting.
'Within any year, the diversity of work that emerges from the course is astonishing' - Stephen Jeffreys
Playwriting Studies at Birmingham is an intensive course that encourages students to think critically about dramatic writing and helps them put these insights into practice in their own plays. The programme is committed to the exploration of new forms of writing, and this process is supported by structured and ongoing dramaturgy. Students develop their creative work—including an original script for the stage—through tutorials, workshops and readings led by professional writers, directors and dramaturgs. These sessions, coordinated by playwright Steve Waters, focus not only on writing for the stage but also on writing for radio, television and film. Students also investigate issues related to writing practice through theoretically-informed coursework, where they are encouraged to reflect critically on the processes and practices of dramatic writing.
'A shared writing community' - Tim Stimpson
Professional playwrights and other practitioners are invited to lead classes and discuss their work in colloquia outside the classroom. Recent instructors and guests have included Tanika Gupta, Simon Block, David Nicholls, Anthony Weigh, Meredith Oakes, David Eldridge, April de Angelis and Lin Coghlan. Many graduates of the course have embarked on successful careers in the theatre, television and radio.
'There is no better way to learn than from those who know what they are doing' - Lucy Gough
Playwriting Studies is an exciting and innovative programme. It introduces students to a community of writers and plays, and provides an environment in which creative experimentation and critical reflection about playwriting can happen.
Read about:
Course Convenor - Steve Waters
Email: dramapg@contacts.bham.ac.uk
The course has been a launching pad for key conferences on theatre practice since its foundation by David Edgar in 1989. Over the last few years Birmingham hosted 'From Fact to Fiction' (September 2007) a day on the relationship between fact and representation in contemporary theatre (I've included a couple of images that might accompany that).
As part of British Theatre Conference we have also co-run 'How Was it for You? Theatre Under Blair' in December 2007 and most recently 'All Together Now: British Theatre After Multiculturalism' Warwick June 2009. '20/20: Teaching Playwriting' is our next conference.
Student production
Department of Drama and Theatre Arts, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, B15 2TT, UK
Email: drama@contacts.bham.ac.uk
Telephone: +44(0)121 414 5998
Fax: +44(0)121 414 5781
